When He Calls Your Name

by Catherynne M. Valente

2026 Hugo Awards Voter Packet.

Genres: Fantasy

35 pages, ebook

Published May 6, 2026

About the author

Catherynne M. Valente was born on Cinco de Mayo, 1979 in Seattle, WA, but grew up in in the wheatgrass paradise of Northern California. She graduated from high school at age 15, going on to UC San Diego and Edinburgh University, receiving her B.A. in Classics with an emphasis in Ancient Greek Linguistics. She then drifted away from her M.A. program and into a long residence in the concrete and camphor wilds of Japan.

She currently lives in Maine with her partner, two dogs, and three cats, having drifted back to America and the mythic frontier of the Midwest.

Reviews

[Angela Bernardoni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Catherynne M. Valente ti amo, sei folle, hai preso un meme e l'hai trasformato nella miglior storia di vampiri che abbia letto da anni.

[Chris Meyers · Rating 1 out of 5]

This story has a stupid gimmick. I won't say what it was, but I should have stopped reading once I realized it. I am now worried that by reading this story I've created a corrupt, negative connotation attached to something that I once enjoyed. I may, in the future, upon hearing that thing, be continually reminded of this story.

I wish I could un-read it.

I read this novelette for Hugo voting purposes. I typically reserve 1-star reviews not for stories that are boring or DNF, but for those rare pieces that years later will cause my eyes to roll and my lips to twist in frustration. This one seems to qualify.

[Pau Lethani · Rating 4 out of 5]

4'5/5

The most thought provoking of all the Best Novelette Hugo Awards 2026 nominees. The most uncomfortable as well which in this case is a positive. The most beautifully written too. Left me speechless.

[Vivian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not really my kind of story, but written with prose like literature they teach in school.

[Michael Daines · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novelette is short-listed for the 2026 Hugo Awards.

“When He Calls Your Name” is a supernatural horror, of sorts, where our protagonist has had her husband lured away by a beautiful woman. The brazenness of it would floor anyone, but she is determined to get her husband back.

This is a fun read, and it is centered around a gimmick that I thought was used well. That being said, it isn’t the best of the nominees.